Posting its 2nd Straight Year of Gains, "Oscars" Surge Year to Year by 5.0 Million Viewers and by 8% in Adults 18-49, the Show's Most-Watched Telecast in 5 Years

"Barbara Walters Special" Draws Biggest Overall Audience Since 2002

"2010 Oscars" Reach 70.0 Million Unique Viewers Across the United States

The "82nd Annual Academy Awards" (8:30-11:39 p.m.)

ABC's broadcast of the "82nd Annual Academy Awards" attracted an average audience of 41.3 million Total Viewers and posted a 13.1 rating among Adults 18-49, based on Nielsen's "Fast National" ratings. The "82nd Annual Academy Awards" registered as TV's most-watched entertainment telecast since 2005 - since 2/27/05.

� Posting its 2nd straight year of gains, the "Oscars" surged year to year by 5.0 million viewers (41.3 million vs. 36.3 million) and by 8% in Adults 18-49 (13.1 rating vs. 12.1 rating), the show's most-watched telecast overall in 5 years - since 2005.

� ABC's "82nd Annual Academy Awards" reached 70.0 million unique television viewers across the U.S. - unduplicated Viewers 2+ watching 6-minutes or more during its telecast.

"Oscar's Red Carpet 2010" (8:00 - 8:30 p.m.)

With "Oscar's Red Carpet 2010" pre-show, ABC pulled in 25.1 million viewers, drawing the special's largest audience since 2007.

"Barbara Walters Special" (7:00 - 8:00 p.m.)

ABC's telecast of "Barbara Walters Special" drew an average audience of 15.0 million viewers, up year to year by 3.4 million viewers (2009 = 11.6 million). In fact the final "Barbara Walters Special" attracted its biggest overall audience in 8 years - since 2002.

A note about increasing DVR penetration and year-to-year rating comparisons: Year-to-year rating comparisons based on the Live + Same Day data stream are distorted by the level of DVR penetration in the Nielsen sample, which has jumped up to 36% currently, from 30% at the same point in 2009. More viewers are watching shows on their own timetables, which may not be reflected in the overnight next day numbers. The only truly valid year-to-year comparison would be one based on the Live + 7 Day metric, once those stats are released by Nielsen.

Source: Nielsen Media Research (Live + Same Day Fast National Ratings) - 3/7/10. Online "Oscar.com" usage figures based on data from Omniture.